Meryl Streep is Brooke Shields' sister and Ben Affleck is Matt Damon's cousin: famous relatives you didn't know about

There are many famous siblings in the world of showbiz (such as Alex and Emma Watson, Bella and Gigi Hadid) and even entire families (the Smiths, Kardashians, Cyruses, Jolie-Pitts, etc.). As a rule, they choose the same field to build their careers in: movies, music, dance, theater, etc. Just think of the movies The Pursuit of Happyness (2006) and Earth After Our Time (2013), starring Will Smith and his son Jaden.

So, when stars have the same surname, it often indicates their blood ties, and when they have different ones, the relationship becomes less obvious. In the material of OBOZ.UA, we have prepared a selection of celebrities with different surnames. Some of them have a slight visual resemblance.

1. Hugh Grant and Thomas Brodie-Sangster

English actor Hugh Grant is a second cousin of British actor Thomas Brodie-Sangster. The former gained world fame for his role as a heartthrob (Four Weddings and a Funeral (1994), Sense and Sensibility (1995), Notting Hill (1999), Bridget Jones's Diary (2001)). The second is due to the fact that he has hardly changed over the years (you won't believe it, but Thomas turned 34 in May 2024), as well as his roles in the films Love Actually (2003), The Last Legion (2007), Becoming John Lennon (2010) and The Maze Runner (2014).

Hugh found out about his blood ties to Thomas in 2003, while filming the movie Love Actually with his relative. Brodie-Sangster told the Times of India: "He didn't know. I told Hugh that he was my second cousin. Then he mentioned my mom and dad... Towards the end of the shoot, he was walking around saying something like, 'Hi, cousin. It was really cool."

2. Madonna and Gwen Stefani

The outrageous Madonna (full name: Madonna Luisa Veronica Ciccone) and the sensual Gwen Stefani are American singers who conquered the world of showbiz with their powerful voices and wonderful vocal techniques. Gwen spoke about their family ties in an interview: "We're really related: the mother of my grandmother's sister's husband is a Ciccone from Detroit. I just always tell this story because I think it's funny... Madonna is nice. She' s always been cool to me. I admire her talent."

3. Meryl Streep and Brooke Shields

The American actress Meryl Streep is the maternal cousin of the American supermodel and actress Brooke Shields. Despite their blood relationship, the two rarely communicate. Perhaps this is due to their busy schedules (after all, they are successful Hollywood stars), or maybe it's banal competition or incompatibility of characters.

4. Kate Middleton and Ellen DeGeneres

In 2011, the American actress, comedian and TV presenter Ellen DeGeneres said in an episode of her own show that she had received a letter from the New England Genealogical Society. It stated that she and Princess Catherine of Wales are distant relatives - cousins in the fifteenth generation.

According to the letter, they are related to a couple, Sir Thomas Fairfax and Agnes Gascoigne, who lived in England in the 1500s. "I am related to Kate. I'm definitely going to be invited to the wedding now," DeGeneres joked shortly before the princess married her husband, Prince William.

5. Rafe Fiennes and King Charles III

The actor known for his role as Lord Voldemort in the Harry Potter film series, Rafe Fiennes, is the eighth-generation cousin of Charles III, King of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland. This was reported by the Financial Times. The family of Fines is descended from the Normans, tribes that inhabited Scandinavia in the Middle Ages and later settled in East Anglia.

6. Matt Damon and Ben Affleck

According to the New England Genealogical Society, American actor Matt Damon and American actor and screenwriter Ben Affleck are tenth-generation cousins. These Hollywood stars are connected by a man named William Knowlton Jr. (a bricklayer who came to the United States in the early seventeenth century). Damon and Affleck grew up in Boston. As children, they spent a lot of time together. Later, when they grew up, they starred together in the movie "Smart Will Hunting" (1997).

7. Madonna, Angelina Jolie and Hillary Clinton

According to the Washington Post, the American singer Madonna and Hillary Clinton, the first lady of the United States (1993-2001), are tenth-generation cousins. Genealogist William Addams Reitwiesner explained that they have common great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-grandparents. The column also states that American actress, model and director Angelina Jolie is a ninth-generation cousin of Clinton.

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